


Love, Actually.

by whyhathyouforsakenme



Category: Monsta X (Band), 방탄소년단 | Bangtan Boys | BTS
Genre: Cuddling & Snuggling, Fluff, Inspired by Love Actually, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-01-16
Updated: 2019-08-04
Packaged: 2019-10-11 06:40:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,387
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17441849
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/whyhathyouforsakenme/pseuds/whyhathyouforsakenme
Summary: A cute new prime minister and a  secretary with a Grinch complex. A love-drunk married couple. An adorable, clutzy widow and a love-sick sweetheart. A self-confident,  forward teenager and a  shy, conservative guy. A loved -up, oblivious couple. A puppy -like backpacker and a grumpy, lost traveler. Who would have thought that seven seemingly separate stories could have been connected in such a strange and wonderful way?





	1. Chapter One; Yoongi & Kihyun (I)

Yoongi.

Sighing heavily through his nose, Min Yoongi dragged himself out of his cozy bed, flopping his feet heavily onto the ground. Wincing slightly at the cold wooden floor, Yoongi dragged his hand through his scraggly bed-head as he shuffled towards his en-suite. He could already hear his housemate, Seokjin, banging around in the kitchen. It was Jin's obnoxiously loud alarm that had woken him, which was half an hour ago and Yoongi had been contemplating ways he could potentially smother Jin and get away with it. Not that he ever would. He wouldn't be able to survive without Jin reminding him of things that he had to do, even eat on occasion. Which is why he was specifically lucky that morning when Jin decided to barge into his room.

"Min Yoongi! Are you- Oh you're already up!" Jin grinned, a kitchen towel thrown over his shoulder and flour dusting his pants. "I've made your favourite, considering what's happening today and I know how you get around people."

"What?" Yoongi asked, confused, as he re-emerged from the bathroom to look at his friend.

"What what?" Jin asked absently, reaching into Yoongi's wardrobe and pulling out his most formal (and cleanest) slacks and shirt. Stepping back for a second, he reached back and chose a black tie that Yoongi forgot he even had. Yoongi sighed again and rolled his eyes.

"What do you mean what's happening today?" Jin stepped back and looked at Yoongi astounded.

"You seriously don't remember? Wow, how did you even get a job as a secretary? I mean, you're secretary to the Prime Minister, I'm pretty sure you need to remember important days and dates and times and-"

"Okay, I get it! I do remember those things, but it's early and I'm at home. I'm not going to remember trivial little things," Yoongi grumbled, trying to think about what Jin was freaking out over. 

"You still don't remember, even though I purposely emphasised something right there? If you actually went to sleep early for once and stopped writing so late maybe you wouldn't forget these things," Jin deadpanned, laying Yoongi's clothes gently on the end of his unmade bed before folding his arms.

"Oi, don't attack me like that! I don't complain when you start cooking at like, half five in the morning!" Yoongi exclaimed. He couldn't deny that his friend was right, but he wasn't about to admit that out loud.

"That's because you eat the food I cook! And you love it!" Jin pointed out, waving his hands animatedly. Yoongi had to hold back the tiny smile trying to break through. He did love the food Jin cooked (it was always better than everyone else's) and how intense he would get about everything and anything.

"Alright, you're not wrong..." he trailed off. "What's so important about today?"

Jin smiled softly at his friend. "New prime minister, Yoongi. You've got to make a great first impression to keep your job."

Yoongi nearly choked. He had completely forgotten about the new minister coming in. He had been hoping that the current-well, now former- guy, Park Jinyoung, would have stayed on for another term. Unfortunately, he decided that he had enough and, as much as he liked Yoongi, left. He told people it was because of the stress of the job, but Yoongi knew better. Really, there was a cute florist, that Jinyoung called BamBam, halfway across the world that he had encountered on a trip abroad that he really wanted to spend time with. Yoongi couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed by this but he respected Jinyoung's wishes. Jinyoung had promised to keep in touch though, so Yoongi held some hope for the future. As for the new guy, Yoongi had never heard of him.

"I forgot.. What's his name again?"

"Yoo Kihyun," Jin replied, strolling towards the door. "Try not to fall in love with this guy. He's pretty cute."

Yoongi snorted. "Fat chance of me ever falling for that guy. You're one to be talking though Jin, still hung up on that dude...uh, what's his name?"

Jin turned so fast that Yoongi thought his head was going to fall off. "Don't start," Jin warned, his cheeks flushed and eyes narrowed. Yoongi held his hands up in defense. Jin stepped out and slammed the door. Yoongi sighed. He was way too defensive about things. Yoongi felt slightly bad for teasing him about their friend Shownu. He knew full well that Shownu (of which Jin was hopelessly in love with) was actually getting married soon to Jooheon, so he felt bad for making fun of him. The worst thing about it was that they had asked Jin if his restaurant could possibly cater for the occasion. Jin, of course, couldn't refuse.  
Not really being too great with feelings or other people, Yoongi decided he needed to make it up to Jin and get his mind off of Shownu. Unfortunately, the only way he could think of getting Jin to get over his unrequited love for Shownu was to consult Shownu. He was better in touch with feelings and other people than Yoongi.

An hour later, Yoongi found himself grumbling a thank you to Jackson, the front security guard, for opening the door for him. Heading directly for his desk, Yoongi threw his bag and coat onto his chair and went in search of Shownu. Shownu was head of security, so Yoongi saw him regularly. It never took very long to find him and it wasn't very easy to miss him either.

"Hyunwoo-hyung," Yoongi called out, spotting Shownu's head over the crowd of workers around him. Immediately, he turned around, stress written across his face. As soon as he saw Yoongi, his expression eased slightly.

"Ah, Yoongi, I was just going to look for you. Are you ready for the Minister's arrival? Is his office ready?"

"What?" Yoongi asked, still distracted by his thoughts of Jin. Shownu raised an eyebrow.

"Yoongi, you're joking right?" Shownu deadpanned, "You're the secretary, you should know full well what!?"

"Oh, right. Yeah, sure. Everything was ready yesterday. What I actually wanted to talk to you about was Jin.." Yoongi trailed off at Shownu's confused expression.

"What about him? Is he ok? He's not sick is he? Jooheon and I were saying it the other day, he seemed a bit off or something. Did he eat something weird again? We told him not to be experimenting with-"

"No to everything you just said, hyung!" Yoongi cut him off before he could go further. He knew how much Shownu could ramble. Sighing, he ran his hand through his hair. "Now I know why Jin likes you so much," he muttered under his breath.

"What did you say? I couldn't hear you," Shownu looked at Yoongi with a rather adorable, confused look on his face. Yoongi sighed and shook his head.

"Nothing, it's nothing. It's ok, I'll sort Jin out myself, sorry, " Yoongi grumbled. It was a mistake thinking he could come to Shownu for help. It would probably just make Jin's affection for Shownu increase anyways.

"Wait what? No, come on Yoongi. Tell me what's up with him,"Shownu said, taking a step towards him.

Yoongi shrugged. "It's nothing. Just me worrying I guess." He rubbed the back of his neck, thinking hard about what he was going to say to Shownu. He knew that Shownu had caught on that something was up, and that was his mistake. Yoongi knew there was no chance he would let it go now, so he had to think of something to tell him.  
"I think he's lonely," Yoongi blurted. Jin would kill him if he heard that. Shownu looked vaguely surprised at first and then smiled.

"Why didn't you just say? Jooheon and I are having Tae's friend and his dad over for dinner later. Tell him to drop by, I'm sure you'll be busy with work because it's Minister Kihyun's first day," Shownu grinned . Yoongi nearly rolled his eyes. He was trying to help Jin, not make the situation worse. But now, now there was no possible way Shownu was going to let him go without promising to make Jin go to dinner with them.

"He's going to insist on bring dessert though," Yoongi grumbled, before turning on his heel and returning to his desk. Today was going to be a long day.

Kihyun.

'You got this, you got this Yoo Ki-hyun!'

Kihyun let out a breath that he hadn't realised he was holding before readjusting his jacket. His car had just pulled up outside 7 Hooper Street, his new office where he would be running the country for as long as they would keep him. Again, Kihyun sighed.

"Are you ready, sir?" Kihyun's driver turned to ask. Kihyun smiled nervously.

"I'll never be ready JB," Kihyun grinned anxiously. "How do I look?"

"As good as always sir," JB replied, grinning widely. Kihyun rolled his eyes.

"I hate when you call me sir. Let's go then."

JB got out of the driver seat and opened the door of the car for Kihyun, glancing up at the security that had just stepped out of the door. Kihyun caught the look between them and spotted the colour that had rushed to JB's face on eye contact. He exhaled heavily through his nose, trying not to laugh at his driver.

"Thank you JB," Kihyun muttered with a soft smile playing on his face. Standing upright and fiddling with his jacket buttons, Kihyun ignored the flocks of reporters on either side of him. He smiled confidently as he stepped forward, taking long strides up the concrete steps and towards the deep cobalt blue door in front of him. He stopped just as he reached the door as the head of security stepped forward. Bowing shortly to him, the much taller of the two introduced himself.

"Son Hyunwoo, sir. Head of security," the taller bowed again and gestured to the tall figure standing next to him. "This is Jackson, sir. He's second in charge of security here." Jackson still hadn't removed his gaze from JB, who was still standing in position by the driver's side of the car. Hyunwoo elbowed him in what he though was a subtle manner. Kihyun struggled to stop a smile from forming on his face as Jackson tore his gaze from JB and suddenly dipped in a flustered bow. Kihyun returned a short bow to both of them and smiled gently.

"Lead the way then," Kihyun gestured towards the door.

"Your assistant-slash-secretary will introduce you to the other employees as you encounter them and is going to be the one to accompany you to meetings and other outings," Hyunwoo explained, walking through the door. "Just a tip with regard to Yoongi-ah, he's sort of the resident grump."

Kihyun let out a short laugh, following Hyunwoo. "Resident grump?"

"Yeah, he's not much into socialising with others and he tends not to get too excited about this time of year either," Hyunwoo glanced down at Kihyun with what he could only describe as an adorable smile. "He is a really good friend though. Maybe you could get through to that side of him too. Minister Jinyoung did. Yoongi-ah was really disappointed when he left."

"Ah, I see," Kihyun's smile faltered. He suddenly felt awkward about being there. He knew how much Jinyoung had been liked, both by his staff and the general public. To hear that his own secretary had been close with the last prime minister didn't really do anything to help the nerves of having to step into the rather large and well liked shoes that had been left behind for him. Hyunwoo hadn't noticed the anxious silence that had engulfed Kihyun and continued to stride ahead. He approached a large mahogany door and opened it before taking a step to the side. Kihyun was still in an anxious daze and hadn't realised that he had stopped.

"Uh, sir?"

Kihyun flickered his eyes over to Hyunwoo. "I hate when people call me sir to be entirely honest with you. " He let out a sigh and rolled his shoulders back before walking confidently making his way through the door. To his left there was a mahogany bookshelf covering the entire wall. In front of him was a large bay window overlooking the currently unlit park, filled with people enjoying the beginning of festivities. Kihyun took another deep breath and turned to his right, only for his breath to be knocked straight out of him again.

In front of a large desk situated beside a door Kihyun assumed led to his own office stood a guy around his height with the most annoyed expression he had ever seen. Despite his grumpy expression, Kihyun could feel his breath catch in his throat. The cold personality being presented by the disinterest on his face was betrayed by the warmth and curiosity held by they intense brown eyes staring right into Kihyun's own eyes. With his pale complexion, coal black hair and formal dress, Kihyun secretly thought he looked like something pulled straight out of a book. As the other raised an eyebrow slowly, he realised that he had been staring and felt warmth flood to his face and a tingling feeling spread through his fingers.

"Ah, you must be Min Yoongi," Kihyun started loudly, turning to fully face him with a smile. Yoongi just nodded in response and bowed shortly and stiffly. Kihyun nodded back and looked away quickly. "Yoo Kihyun."

"I know, I'm pretty sure everyone does," Yoongi replied shortly. Kihyun looked sharply back at him.

"Is that such a bad thing?"

"Depends," Yoongi shrugged. "You seem to be already popular in the eyes of the tabloids anyway. Whether you're good at your job and whether the rest of the staff like you is a completely different thing."

Kihyun raised his eyebrow at the bluntness of his secretary. "You realise I could take offence to that and fire you?"

"But you haven't taken offence?" Yoongi questioned, raising his own eyebrow to mirror Kihyun. Again, he felt his face warming but took a step towards Yoongi anyway.

"I don't really take offence to things all that easily, especially not from some one as cute as you."

A slight flicker of surprise made its way across Yoongi's face and Kihyun could feel himself smirk.

"That could be taken as inappropriate conversation, Minister," Yoongi deadpanned, a neutral expression making its way back onto his now pink tinged face. Kihyun fully smiled back at him, satisfied with the response he managed to get out of the secretary.

"But you haven't entirely taken it as inappropriate though, have you?"

Yoongi opened his mouth, as if to say something to Kihyun, but immediately closed it. Kihyun chuckled lightly and tilted his head.

"For someone that presents themselves as intimidating, you're actually pretty sweet," he stood back straight and took a step back from Yoongi. "I suppose I better actually get to work then. I don't exactly know many of the other employees and Son Hyunwoo said that you would tell me about them as I met them. I'd prefer for you to pull up their files and tell me about them before I meet them. "

Yoongi cleared his throat and shuffled slightly. " Yes sir. When would suit you? You don't have any meetings until this afternoon and there are already files on your desk for you to have read before then. You get to choose, sir."

"What time is lunch?"

"Uh, mine is at one, sir, so then? Others have theirs at different times throughout the day," Yoongi replied, glancing at the schedule he had already pulled up on his computer screen.

"Great, remember lunch at one with me then. Lunch is on me." Unsure of what possessed him to do so, Kihyun winked at a completely dumbfounded Yoongi before stepping into his office and shutting the door softly behind him.


	2. Chapter 2: Wonho & Changkyun (I)

Changkyun.  
"Felix, let go of Changbin! Hyunjin, sweetheart, if you keep hugging Jeongin while he sleeps you will smother him," Changkyun turned around from the four adorable toddlers in front of him in search of his guitar. It was close to nap time for them and he always played for them. Otherwise they were like hyped up rabbits screaming at one another. Sighing, Changkyun spotted the other five boys giggling in a corner. Approaching them slowly, he bent down and looked over the little boys' heads.

"What are you five little monkeys up to?" Changkyun asked, suppressing a smile. Chan turned with a gasp and covered his mouth with the sleeves of his over-sized Tigger jumper, giggling. Woojin looked to see what Chan was gasping at before realising Changkyun was behind them. Embarrassed, he jumped behind Chan and peaked over his shoulder with wide, sparkling eyes. Changkyun covered his smile before looking to the other three boys. Jisung was sitting on the floor, beaming up at him, with tinsel strewn around his tiny shoulders, paper baubles hanging off of it and a paper star clipped into his messy hair. Seungmin and Minho stood either side of him, their hands folded behind their backs. Seungmin had an angelic look on his face while Minho held a serious expression. Changkyun sighed.

"Boys, what have I said about decorating one another with the tree decorations? We need those for the tree so Santa will come, don't we?" Changkyun stood up and smiled, glancing around the small room again for his guitar. The little boys in front of him gasped and frantically began pulling the decorations off of a now panicked Jisung. "Where did I leave my guitar?"

A light knock came to the door startling Changkyun. He turned to the boys and told them to go gather their blankets for their nap. Smiling widely at the person through the glass, Changkyun couldn't help but laugh lightly at his husband holding the large guitar case outside the window.

"Hey, you left this at home again," Wonho grinned as he side-stepped Changkyun and into the colourful classroom. Changkyun shook his head, knowing full well what his other half was up to. This wasn't the first time he had hidden the instrument from Changkyun just so he could visit the children. As if on cue, the eight toddlers that were awake began squealing upon seeing Wonho.

"Won, is here!" Minho began pulling Jisung across the room enthusiastically, the younger stumbling after him. On the other side of the room, Jeongin still slept as Hyunjin tried to wake him.

"Jeongie, wake up! Won- hyung is here!" Hyunjin shook the smallest of the group gently, looking back and forth between his friend and the others now crowding Wonho. Changkyun went over and picked up the two, Jeongin tucking his face into his shoulder immediately. Hyunjin looked over at him and reached out to poke his cheek.   
"Jeongie!"

"Shh, sweetheart, its okay. It's nap time anyway."

He looked over at Wonho, who was now sitting on the floor with Jisung swinging out of his elbow and Felix attempting to pull Changbin and Chan up onto his lap with him. Seungmin was jumping around him in circles while Minho looked on, completely unimpressed that Jisung had let go of him. Wonho reached out and ruffled his hair.

"Hey kiddo, where's your blanket? Kyunnie said it was nap time," he smiled softly at the grumpy-faced child in front of him. Changkyun's heart melted a the sight, knowing that Wonho had a soft-spot for both Minho and Felix (who had managed getting Changbin squished onto Wonho's lap with him and was holding hands with Chan, who had given up and sat on the floor in front of them). Minho smiled bashfully at Wonho, holding up his fluffy blanket. Jeongin stirred in his arms and began looking around.

"Kookie?" he whispered to Changkyun. Changkyun chuckled softly. 

"No, just Won-hyung." 

Jeongin pouted and rubbed his eyes sleepily with one hand and waved drowsily with the other. Hyunjin had rested his head against Changkyun's chest and waved back, not realising Jeongin was actually waving at Wonho. Again, Changkyun laughed. Deciding it was time for the children to actually settle down, Changkyun whispered for a now sleepy Hyunjin clap his hands.

"C'mon kiddos, as much as we all love Wonho, I think we should all grab our blankets, get our spots and settle down,"Changkyun attempted. Evidently, they preferred to mess around with his husband than actually listen to him. Wonho, however, was completely oblivious to his husband's struggles. Changkyun sighed as Wonho began tickling a squealing Felix, with Changbin joining in soon after. Jeongin heard Changkyun sigh and evidently remembered what he had said to the other boys about Santa, only five minutes earlier.

"Hey! Santa won't come if we don't listen to Kyun!" Jeongin squeaked sleepily at the others. Hyunjin looked at Jeongin, mouth open. Wonho glanced up at them, choking back a laugh. Minho turned and pouted, before speaking softly to the younger.

"But the older hyungs at home said only the good kids with parents get presents Jeongin!"

Changkyun felt his heart tug. All of the children in front of him were orphans, none of them had anyone except Changkyun and Wonho to completely dote on them. But they couldn't afford to adopt them all, even if they wanted to. Wonho made eye-contact with Chankyun, a pleading look written across his face. He could tell Wonho wanted nothing more in that moment than to bundle all nine of the children into his car and completely spoil them. All nine of the children were looking at him now as well. Jeongin had started sniffling as soon as Minho spoke. Woojin had made his way over to Chan and was now clinging to him. Seungmin had stopped jumping around and was peaking over Wonho's shoulder at him. Changbin had stopped tickling Felix, but the two were still holding onto one another on Wonho's lap. Jisung was looking at Minho with wide eyes. Changkyun bent back down and placed Hyunjin and a watery-eyed Jeongin on the ground. The older of the two grabbed their blankets from the corner and pulled the younger into a blanketed hug, whispering "Don't cry Jeongie" repeatedly. Changkyun's heart melted at the sight. 

"Does everyone have their blankets?" he asked softly as the others moved to copy Hyunjin and Jeongin. Wonho lifted Felix gently from his lap and attempted to place him on the ground between Minho and Jisung. Felix seemed to refuse by gripping onto Wonho's shirt tightly. Changkyun let Wonho struggle with Felix and sat down, cross-legged, in front of the children.

"Listen to me, okay? Santa comes to everyone that has been good, and each of you have been little angels. Even Minho and Jisung, even though they painted Jeongin's face while he was sleeping,"Changkyun chuckled lightly before continuing. "All of you are going to get presents from Santa. We sent letters, remember? Chan got his hand stuck in the letter box so Woojin and Changbin had to pull him out."

The boys in front of his all giggled, clutching their blankets tightly and shuffling closer together. Felix had let go of Wonho, but was now trying to burrow his way under Minho's blanket with him while wrapping his blanket around the two of them. Changbin, Jisung and Seungmin squished themselves together, rolled up in their blankets. He smiled widely at the boys in front of him as Wonho brought over his guitar and sat behind him, wrapping his arms around Changkyun's middle. Leaning back against Wonho's front, Changkyun let out a contented sigh before beginning to sing.

Wonho.

"Kyunnie?" Wonho questioned softly, wrapping his arms around the younger and resting his head on his shoulder. The younger hummed as he placed his battered guitar back into its equally battered, yet colourful, case. "The kids aren't getting what they want for Christmas from the orphanage this year, are they?"

Wonho felt Changkyun tense in his arms before shaking his head stiffly. Wonho felt his chest tighten. He buried his face into the shorter's shoulder.

"What if we bought them presents? Maybe rope some of our friends into helping us?" He mumbled, squeezing Changkyun closer. He felt the other shake slightly in silent laughter. 

"I don't see why not," he whispered back. Wonho smiled onto his shoulder and gently pressed a kiss there.

"I should probably go. The new Prime Minister is meeting with the leaders of the cabinet parties this afternoon and I have to be there to get the official photographs,"Wonho frowned. He was reluctant to leave Changkyun and the children. It was the highlight of most of his days to hide something from his husband as an excuse to drop by and see them all. He completely fell apart every time he saw Changkyun interacting with them, especially Felix and Minho. There was something about the two that Wonho couldn't help but adore. They were precious to him. 

"Alright then. When will you be finished?"

"Not sure. We could go out tonight, go looking for presents for them," he pouted, letting go of the younger so he could turn and face him. Changkyun smiled brightly at him before shaking his head.

"I would really love to do that, Won, but I can't. I promised Hoseok-hyung I would help him with something."

Wonho frowned. He knew he shouldn't be jealous of Hoseok, but he couldn't help it. Changkyun hadn't been very forth-coming about whatever it was that he was doing with Hoseok, but Wonho didn't want to pry. Changkyun had been friends with Hoseok far longer than he had known him so he trusted that there was nothing suspicious going on. But there was always a doubt niggling in the back of his mind that maybe, just maybe, he wasn't actually good enough.

"Hey," Changkyun had reached out to touch his cheek gently. "We can always go tomorrow afternoon. I really want to get these kids presents, but not nearly as much as you do." 

Wonho didn't have to force a smile onto his face. The innocence and adorable expression on Changkyun's face made him completely forget about any worries he had. He leaned forward and pecked him on the nose quickly. Immediately, Changkyun's face flared up a brilliant pink colour. Wonho smiled proudly at him.

"Alright. I'll see you tonight at home then, yeah?" He called over his shoulder, grinning broadly. "Oh, Kookie said he's going to drop by after school later with a tree for the kids." 

Changkyun nodded, smiling broadly and held a finger to his lips, pointing to the sleeping children on the floor. Wonho nodded and smiled fondly down at the toddlers before looking back to Changkyun.

"Love you, Kyunnie,"he whispered. Changkyun smiled softly back.

"Love you too."

Wonho turned from the colourful classroom, throwing one last glance at the sleeping children before he left. As he walked further from the room, the more doubt began to return to his mind. He couldn't help it. Changkyun had been spending more time with J-Hope than him recently and it was starting to get to him. Every time he brought it up, Changkyun would just brush him off and never tell him what was going on. Wonho felt guilty for doubting his husband and Hoseok, but he really couldn't help it. It plagued his thoughts for the whole day, distracting him in every free moment. 

 

That evening, Wonho arrived home to an empty house. He had called Namjoon to see if he was free to come over for a while with Jungkook, but they were going to be busy. Sighing, he grabbed leftovers from the fridge and headed to the living room. He had decided earlier that day to wait for Changkyun to arrive home to get something proper to eat. But the later it got, the less patient Wonho became. He ate alone that evening. By half ten that night, Wonho was past impatient and annoyed. Tired from a combination of work that day and feeling completely dejected by the lack of his husband's presence, Wonho went to sleep alone. The following morning, he woke up to an empty space beside him and a note from Changkyun saying he didn't want to wake him the night before or that morning and that he would see him that evening for dinner. There was no mention of going out for presents for the children. Changkyun had forgotten. Wonho crumpled up the note in his hand, a lump forming in his throat. Picking up his phone and flopping back onto his bed, Wonho called the only person he wanted to see. 

"Namjoon-ah, can you please come over?"


	3. Namjoon & Jin (I)

Namjoon.

"Jungkook-ah! You better have your ass in here in the next three seconds or-"

"Dad, I'm behind you!"

Startled, Namjoon jumped slightly, knocking over the lamp on the small sitting room coffee table behind him. Jungkook snorted and picked up his schoolbag that had been resting by their worn-leather couch.

"Did you break it this time?"

Namjoon sighed as he bent down and gingerly picked up the lamp, half closing his eyes, as if being unable to see it would mean it wasn't broken. Grinning up at his son, he picked up the unbroken lamp and stood up.

"Now, see. I don't break everything I touch."

As he steadied the lamp back on the table, the shade completely toppled off, the clips cracked. Jungkook burst out laughing, both at Namjoon's dismayed facial expression and that his father had succeeded in breaking another household item.

"Don't tell Wonho, he'll never let me hear the end of this. Speaking of your uncle, did you tell him that yourself and Taehyung-ah are going to be dropping by with the tree for the kids?" Namjoon asked distractedly as he stepped back from the lamp and picked up his brief case as he looked around for his keys.

"Sure thing. Did you remember that we're going to Tae's house for dinner this evening?" Jungkook dangled the car keys in front of Namjoon's face while smirking.

"Yes, I did actually. You better get moving, Bunny Boy, before you make us both late for school."

"You don't go to school dad, and it's actually you that's delaying," Jungkook sassed as he turned and opened the door, looking back pointedly at Namjoon and ignoring the nickname Namjoon had been calling him since he was a toddler. Shaking his head and walking out the door, Namjoon reached over and ruffled Jungkook's hair.

When did he get so tall? And grown up looking?

Namjoon looked at his son with a fond smile. He hadn't really noticed it as much of recent, but Jungkook had really grown. The little boy that had insisted that he was growing up to be Iron Man or the kid from 'Spirited Away' was now standing in front of him, in his final year before graduating. Ready for college. Ready to leave him. He couldn't help but feel his heart sink a little. He had been young enough when Jungkook was born, and so had Jungkook's mother when she passed. But everyday it got a little easier with Jungkook around, with Shownu sticking by him, with Wonho keeping him grounded. Now Wonho was married, Shownu was engaged and Jungkook was almost ready to leave. That single moment made Namjoon realise that maybe he needed to start doing things for himself, maybe meet other people. Jungkook wasn't going to always want to stick around, even if Namjoon was his father. He knew that he was going to spread his wings as soon as possible, though Namjoon was almost certain that Taehyung and Jungkook were going to be inseparable, even in college. Those two would probably end up in the same nursing home when they're ninety and still argue over video games, even if they were blind and deaf.

"Dad?"

Jungkook's voice startled him out of his thoughts.

"Ah, sorry Jungkook- ah, I got lost in thought," Namjoon grinned as he took the keys from Jungkook. "Move your butt into that car now, and quick."

Namjoon ignored the complaints from Jungkook about how he was actually the one to consistently delay them by breaking something for the duration of their drive. He was still lost in his thoughts on how quickly Jungkook had grown up without him realising. He couldn't help but wonder what else about his son he hadn't noticed. Was he doing alright in school? Does he have any friends? The only friend he could think of Jungkook having was Taehyung, with a mention of some other kid called Kim Yugyeom at times. He had never mentioned anyone else really. Jungkook had never had a girlfriend either, come to think of it. Every time Namjoon had mentioned it to him, he would get really flustered and say that he was too shy or that there was no one that had caught his eye. Namjoon had questioned him about Yugyeom when he had mentioned him too, but he thought that Jungkook was going to combust, stuttering about someone called Youngjae, if he continued to ask about it. But that wasn't anything of recent. Namjoon realised that he hadn't actually spent time alone with Jungkook in a considerable amount of time. Whenever he had free time, it seemed that either Wonho and Changkyun or Taehyung were always with them. As much as Namjoon wanted to start getting his own life, he decided he would rather spend some time with his son before he outgrew it.

"Jungkook-ah?" Namjoon turned to look at Jungkook in the passenger seat as he pulled up in front of the school. Jungkook had been fumbling with his comically large schoolbag but looked up at Namjoon with a flushed face. 

"Yeah?" 

"How about we spend Saturday together? Just the two of us I mean."

Jungkook's head snapped up to look at Namjoon. Namjoon felt guilty about the surprise etched onto his sons face. He was looking at him with wide doe eyes. At least some things never change. 

"Really?"

"Of course. We can do whatever we feel, yeah? If you want to go out for food we can-" Jungkook cut Namjoon off.

"You mean we can go out for food so I can meet this cute chef you keep going to visit by using his food as an excuse," Jungkook grinned cheekily, looking genuinely happy to be spending the day with Namjoon. Namjoon felt his face warm as he squinted at the teenager. Did he talk about that chef so much?

"Aish, I do not! I like the food from there the best. It's better than the canteen food anyway. And don't be so cheeky, I could just call Wonho-hyung and go out with him instead!" 

Jungkook shook his head frantically and flung his door open. Namjoon spotted Taehyung practically skip towards the school steps sporting vibrant red hair, a bandanna keeping his hair from his eyes. He stopped next to a taller guy with jet black hair who he assumed was Yugyeom. Taehyung waved brightly over and Namjoon waved shortly back, chuckling at the consistent boxy smile plastered on the boy's face. Yugyeom raised his hand shyly as a wave when he noticed Namjoon looking. Namjoon watched as Jungkook stepped out and straightened his school blazer, looking over at his two friends. And watched as bright pink splotched appeared on his face as Taehyung began throwing finger hearts at him as Yugyeom grinned widely and waved enthusiastically. Namjoon shook his head and turned back in his seat as Jungkook grabbed his bag and shut the car door a little harder than he usually would have. He waved a little behind him before stalking over to a still grinning Taehyung and a now distracted Yugyeom, tugging down his sleeves as he went. Waving even though he knew he wasn't being looked at, Namjoon pulled off, still thinking about what Jungkook had said about the chef from 'Silver Spoon'. Did he really talk about him that much?

That didn't stop him from entering the restaurant as he usually did at lunch that day.

Seokjin.

Kim Seokjin was having a pretty bad day. He hadn't slept properly, stressing pointlessly over the fact that he was waiting on another food critic to publish their review on his food. Then he had gotten up and attempted to cook for Yoongi, his flatmate and friend, only for him to doze off and burn the first batch. After going to wake Yoongi and help get him ready for the day, Yoongi had managed to bring up a sensitive topic, throwing him into an even worse mood. It wasn't unusual for Yoongi to be in a bad mood when he woke and Jin was sure he may have over-reacted, but it still didn't excuse his behaviour. The bus was late to the stop, meaning he was late for work. As if that wasn't bad enough, Yoongi rang not even half an hour after he had reached work to tell him that he was going to be with the Prime Minister that evening so Shownu had invited him to dinner with them and Taehyung's friend. It broke Jin's heart every time he saw Shownu and Jooheon together, but he would rather Shownu be happy than try anything. He hoped that some of his usual customers would come in today and distract him. 

There was one in particular who seemed to be able to cheer him up no matter what had happened that day. His cute dimpled smile and shy mannerisms at first kept bringing Jin back to his table. That and the fact that he seemed to enjoy Jin's terrible jokes and pun riddled menu, laughing along with Jin's windshield wiper laugh every time.

It was now lunch and the restaurant was bustling. Jin kept his eyes peeled as he walked out among the customers. He really needed to see the dimpled smile right now. As if on cue, the tall man stepped through the door, tripping over someones chair as he walked. Flustered, he caught the chair and apologised profusely, bowing deeply as a crimson flush spread across his cheeks. His glasses had slid down his face, now slightly crooked. Jin felt the urge to straighten Namjoon's glasses,but held himself back, surprised at his own behaviour. Namjoon straightened up and spotted Jin, dimples making an appearance immediately. 

"Namjoon-ssi, right this way,"Jin smiled widely, his heart fluttering strangely at the sight of Namjoon making his way towards him. Namjoon bowed quickly as he approached. Jin felt his face warm at the gesture, glancing around to see if anyone had noticed. Nobody seemed to care."There's no need for that, Namjoon-ssi."

Namjoon just smiled sheepishly back and followed Jin to a table. Jin puled out the chair and let Namjoon sit. He noticed the pink dusted across Namjoon's cheeks and smiled to himself, the warmth of his face not going as he handed him a menu. 

"There's a few new dishes on there..."Jin trailed off as Namjoon scanned through the menu in front of him and watched as a grin made it's way on to his face. He watched as the younger began to chuckle, so he looked away, his eyes frantically darting around the room. He was desperately hoping for a distraction. Mark, his head waiter, made eye-contact across the room and winked suggestively. He had been insinuating for weeks that Namjoon kept returning to the restaurant more so to see Jin than for the food. Jin profusely denied what Mark had been saying, but it fell on deaf ears. 

"I think I'll have the 'Jin-guine'. Nice pun by the way," Namjoon's deep, smooth voice broke Jin out of his moment of panic. He looked at directly at the seated man in front of his questioningly.

"Pardon?"

"The 'Jin-guine'. It was you that made the pun, no?" Namjoon tilted his head slightly as he laughed lightly. Jin couldn't help but let out a breathy laugh with him, feeling a huge grin make its way onto his face just looking at Namjoon.

"Nobody else laughed at that except for my friend's son's friend," Jin paused. "That's slightly confusing." 

Again, Namjoon let out a chuckle and smiled widely at Jin, who suddenly felt his chest constrict. He stepped forward and took the menu that was being handed to him and turned towards the kitchen, a toothy smile still holding its place on his face. As he turned, he heard a phone ring behind, followed by the sound of something being dropped. Jin walked away, clutching the menu's to his chest tightly , biting his lip and trying not to laugh at the mutterings of the younger male he had left at the table.

"Why always me- ah Wonho-hyung!" 

 

 

Later that evening, after Jin had Mark help him move the table that Namjoon had tripped over on the way in the door so no-one else would trip, he was making his way back to Shownu and Jooheon's house for dinner, dessert in hand (just as Yoongi had predicted). He felt slightly jittery at having dinner with the guy he had been infatuated with these past three years and his fiance. Jin couldn't even resent Jooheon for getting Shownu first, in fact, he got on extremely well with him. Especially when Shownu wasn't actually around to turn Jin into a flustered mess. He was glad, however, that Taehyung and his friend, Jungkook, were going to be there. They always provided him with some sort of a distraction from his unfortunate love-life. What he wasn't expecting when he arrived knocking on the door was to be met with a familiar face, with dimples that had the charming effect of calming him down instantly, despite Jin's best efforts at times. Standing in the doorway, with an expression Jin was sure reflected his own, was none other than Namjoon, devoid of his glasses and dressed casually in a pair of black jeans, red graphic t-shirt that Jin wasn't sure Namjoon actually owned and rather untidy silver hair. Jin couldn't help but stare, both due to the shock of seeing one of his customers opening the door of his friend's house and at the fact that said customer was even more attractive in casual clothing as he was in a tight shirt and dress pants. Namjoon's mouth had parted slightly upon seeing Jin. He could hear Jooheon calling Taehyung and his friend somewhere withing the house behind Namjoon, but never once took his eyes off the slightly taller man in front of him. Yoongi had failed to mention that Shownu was having other company, and boy was Jin going to give him an earful for not warning him. He was glad to have another distraction around, but also terrified that Namjoon was going to figure out that he had the unfortunate luck to be suffering from a rather embarrassing case of unrequited love.He was lucky that both Taehyung and Jungkook were pretty oblivious to it. They wouldn't have known the difference even if he screamed it, sang it or scrawled it across a billboard and hit them with it.

Jin held eye-contact with Namjoon for no longer than a few seconds, but it was long enough for Namjoon to take on a dusting of pink across his face. Realising that he was staring, Jin cleared his throat and looked behind the taller's shoulders.

"Well, isn't this..." Jin began, only for Namjoon to smile at him coyly, a mischievous sparkle in his eyes.

"Jin-teresting?"


	4. Taehyung & Jungkook (I)

Taehyung.

Tying the navy strip of cloth securely at the nape of his neck, Taehyung glanced in the mirror of the cabinet about the bathroom sink and smiled softly. He was aware that his hair was obnoxiously bright in colour but didn't really care what everyone was going to think about it. There really was only one person's opinion he cared about regarding what he did or looked like, and that was Jungkook. Jooheon had been the one to encourage him to dye his hair the bright colour to match his own intensely coloured hair. Shownu, being the 'sensible' one of the trio, refused to dye his hair, citing the arrival of the new prime minister as reason not to. Taehyung saw it as more of a reason to dye his hair. Shownu had looked at him with despair in his eyes as Jooheon laughed at his antics when he suggested the three of them matching in colour.

Turning from the mirror, Taehyung made his way out of the bathroom and through the cluttered hall towards the kitchen. He could hear Jooheon and Shownu speaking in hushed voices and hoped that it wasn't about the fact that Jungkook was coming over again. He always got flustered whenever they teased him about liking his best friend and he could never retaliate. He could also never do anything about Jungkook. The boy was too oblivious to even notice that he was more than just a friend to Taehyung, yet everyone that knew them was aware of it.

Changkyun and Wonho could tell straight away when he went with Jungkook to visit the pre-school (although he thinks that maybe Changkyun told Wonho after he sat there looking completely confused by Changkyun's not-so-subtle attempts at getting Taehyung to confess). Jin-hyung had figured it out the first time he saw the two of them together. Taehyung had figured out that he was crushing hard on Shownu too, but never said anything. He knew it would upset Jin and felt the smallest bit sorry for him, having to see Jooheon with Shownu. He would never create drama between three of his favourite people. He was pretty sure Jungkook's dad was aware of it too, but Taehyung was too terrified to even think about what his reaction would be if he came clean about liking his son. The thought of him actually being aware of Taehyung's feelings scared him more than Shownu when he was angry, and that was always more frightening than any horror film.

As he reached the kitchen door, Shownu looked up and smiled at Taehyung, his eyes turning into tiny crescents. Taehyung felt himself smile widely back. Shownu always had that affect on people. Jooheon stopped talking as soon as he spotted Taehyung and stood up.

"Taehyung-ah! You look ready for Christmas with the red hair,"Jooheon exclaimed, a wide grin and deep dimples gracing his face. Taehyung's smile grew wider and he felt warmth spread through his chest, just as it did every time Jooheon and Shownu complimented him or showed him some form of affection. The warmth spread to his face as Jooheon continued speaking. "Jungkookie is going to love it!"

Shownu chuckled in the corner as Taehyung's eyes widened.

"Aish, every time hyung!" Taehyung whined as he clenched his fists at his sides, not knowing what to do with his hands. Jooheon just laughed in response and winked.

"Jooheony, lay off the kid," Shownu scolded softly, putting his hand on gently on Jooheon's on the table. He wore a soft smile that showed he wasn't actually annoyed at his fiancé.

"What? I'm right, am I not? Anyways, he's going to visit the pre-school kids today and we both know how excited the smallest of those cuties get when he sees Tae and Jungkookie."

Taehyung went quiet, a soft smile on his face as he thought about Jeongin and the other kids in the pre-school.

"Seungmin-ah was looking for you guys again the last time I visited. Changkyung-hyung said that he's been asking for you guys every time he mentions a visitor is coming in."

He spotted Jooheon grab hold of Shownu's hand tightly in excitement out of the corner of his eye as he swung the fridge open and went in search of something for his breakfast. He had overheard them speaking about adopting recently, but hadn't been aware that it was Seungmin, or so he assumed. Taehyung found the smile on his face didn't leave when he thought of the people he considered parents to him adopting such an adorable kid. To him, it would almost be like having a little brother, his own sibling. The thought warmed his heart as he imagined the four of them as a sort of family. When Jooheon had started fostering him, Taehyung had been terrified he was going to be sent back straight away. Yet, here he was, five years later, still with Jooheon and now Shownu too. The thought of adding a kid, someone he considered to be in a situation similar to his own, to their eclectic family excited him.

"Oh, was he?" Jooheon questioned, his voice quivering with excitement. Shownu smiled the seal-like smile Taehyung had grown accustomed to whenever Jooheon did something Shownu found cute.

"Yeah, Jungkook-ah and I are going to visit them after school today with a Christmas tree. I was thinking maybe we could buy a few of them presents," Taehyung turned away from the fridge to look at the two seated at the kitchen island. They were looking at one another, a slight worry readable on their faces. Taehyung understood that they did have their wedding to pay for soon, and if they were actually adopting Seungmin as he assumed, that was going to cost quite a bit too. Having an extra kid in the house was going to undoubtedly be expensive. Flustered, Taehyung rushed to speak. "I mean, I saved up a bit so I could anyways, they're just so small and I don't think they're getting..much..." he trailed off, mildly embarrassed by his sudden outburst. He glanced quickly up at the clock and feigned surprise.

"You know what, I'm running late for school, love you guys!" Taehyung sped out of the room, not even waiting to witness the flicker of emotions that passed across both Shownu and Jooheon's faces.

"Wait Tae-"

Taehyung slammed the door behind him in a panic and continued to run down the road, towards his friend's house. Yugyeom lived around the corner from Jooheon and Taehyung, so it didn't take Taehyung all that long to reach his house. He was aware he was extremely early , but that didn't stop him. He was itching to get away from what he perceived to be an awkward situation that he created at home. He didn't heed the calls that Jooheon was making after him that he had forgotten to actually eat the breakfast he had prepared.

Arriving at Yugyeom's gate slightly out of breath, Taehyung rapped on the door shortly. He heard scuffling on the other side of the door and a muffled shout. Taehyung wasn't concerned by what he was hearing, fully aware that Yugyeom's older brother was the one messing with him behind the door. His assumptions were confirmed when a disheveled Mark opened the door.

"Taehyung-ah! You're early!," Mark chirped as he smiled brightly at Taehyung, his hair fluffed up, sticking out in places and his clothes crumpled. Taehyung just shrugged.

"Left early. Is Yugy ready yet?"

"I AM! THIS PABO WON'T GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Yugyeom screeched into Mark's ear, the elder clapping his hands across his ears and letting go of the door. Taehyung winced in sympathy.

"Aish! Respect your hyung," Mark groaned as Yugyeom shoved past him.

"Aish, respect your hyung," Yugyeom mimicked, standing a head taller than Mark, although he was the younger of the two. "You better get ready hyung. Jin-hyung will kill you if you're late again."

Taehyung stared at the two bickering as he imagined himself in the place of Mark and Seungmin as his younger sibling . He had lost track of the amount of things that had made him smile that morning, so it was no surprise for Taehyung to find himself grinning at his thoughts. He was vaguely aware of the two continuing to mimic one another in front of him as his thoughts strayed. He could visualise tiny Seungmin running around the house, causing chaos and driving poor Shownu mad. Of course, Jooheon would dote on him , he would be Jooheon's tiny precious baby, and Taehyung would be someone he could look up to, to take example from. He could imagine himself bringing Seungmin out to give Jooheon and Shownu a break from them. Taking him out for ice-cream in Jin-hyung's restaurant, Namjoon-issi making Jin-hyung flustered somehow and Jungkook-

"Crap," Taehyung breathed out, interrupting Mark's next retaliation. "Yugy, we promised Jungkook-ah we would be waiting for him."

"I'm coming now," Yugyeom grumbled, shoving his brother out of the way. Taehyung bounced on his toes nervously, looking forward to seeing Jungkook, but anxious about how he was going to react to his exuberant hair colour. Stupid, but important to Taehyung. 

"Respect meeeeee!" Mark called after his brother, waving to Taehyung as he retreated out through the gate. "Don't have too much fun with Youngjae later Gyeom-ah!" 

Taehyung let out an un-hidden laugh as he walked beside a rather bashful looking Yugyeom, whose face now held the most vivid pink flush he had ever witnessed. 

"Aish, I wish he wouldn't yell things like that at me when I'm on the street."

"I thought you didn't care about what the neighbours think." Taehyung threw a boxy grin at the younger, whose ears were flaming in embarrassment.

"I don't, but Jackson-hyung lives two doors down from us and he loves teasing me about it. Specifically due to Youngjae being in college now," Yugyeom muttered miserably. Taehyung let out a short chuckle and patted his friend's arm. Suddenly nervous, Taehyung cleared his throat.

"Yugy-ah?"

Yugyeom looked up from where his eyes were following the cracked footpath as the walked.

"Yeah?"

"Uhm..nothing.. Well, it's not nothing, except it is, but-"

"Taehyung, let me guess. Its about Jungkook and how you are getting more obvious about how you feel, so everyone is commenting on it, but Jungkook is too much of a coconut head to even realise that people are talking about you two. But now you feel like someone is going to straight-up say it to him, even though what they're actually saying isn't straight, but that's besides the point. Because its nearly Christmas you want to tell him but don't know exactly how to, so you were going to ask me how Youngjae managed to tell me, even though I'm pretty sure you were around for that whole cringe festival." Yugyeom stopped talking and took a deep breath, never once actually looking Taehyung in the eye.

Taehyung stopped suddenly and blinked in surprise. Yugyeom kept walking, oblivious that Taehyung was being left behind. The accuracy of Yugyeom's 'guess' terrified him slightly and made him think that ,maybe, just maybe, Yugyeom had developed some form of telepathy. He hadn't realised that he had stopped in front of Yugeom's neighbour's house until their dog began barking at him. Throwing a glance over his shoulder, Yugyeom had noticed that Taehyung had fallen behind at the sound of the dog's yapping.

"Stop lagging behind, you dodo, you're setting off poor Vivi again!" Yugyeom called back to Taehyung , never stopping, only tilting his head back slightly. "I only guessed because I spend so much with the both of you."

"If you already knew what what I was going to ask, you must have an answer for me, right?" Taehyung jogged lightly to catch up to his taller friend. Unfortunately, Yugyeom shook his head in response to Taehyung's question.

"No, Youngjae was super cringey and kept singing things at me." 

Taehyung went quiet and thought back to when Youngjae was trying his hardest to get Yugyeom's attention, even though the younger was already infatuated with him. He remembers Yugyeom humming the tunes Youngjae had sung to him until he actually picked up the courage to agree to going out with the elder. Yugyeom looked over to see a tiny smirk make its way onto Taehyung's face as they walked. 

"Don't even think about it, hyung."

Taehyung's eyebrows shot up at Yugyeom actually calling him hyung and in a 'fake' surprise.

"Think about what?"

"Singing to Jungkook."

Taehyung didn't reply as his smirk began to broaden.

"No. No, nope, not happening Tae. It's super cringey and embarrassing and-"

"Christmas is coming, Yugy! Its about time for some cringe!" 

Jungkook.

The day was full of surprises for Jungkook by the time he reached Taehyung's house for dinner. Firstly, he was actually ready to leave the house before his father, followed by his father suggesting that they actually spend a full day together, something they hadn't done in as long as Jungkook could remember. Then Taehyung had surprised him by arriving at the school steps with his hair the most vivid shade of crimson he had ever had the joy of witnessing. He had fawned over Taehyung's hair, excitedly running his hands through it. Yugyeom had wasted no time in pointing out that Taehyung now had the same colour hair as his favourite childhood Disney princess, Ariel. He hoped that he hadn't made it too obvious just how flustered he had gotten at the comment. He had been mildly worried about how Taehyung was going to react to the comment, but Taehyung had just laughed and turned away. Then came the singing, which confused him even further.

It was after school when it happened. Yugyeom had just walked away from them, muttering something to Youngjae on approaching him. Whatever he had said said to him resulted in Youngjae clapping wildly and giving a thumbs up towards where he stood with Taehyung before pecking a rather fed-up looking Yugyeom on the cheek. Jungkook wasn't sure what was going on, but the subtle smile on his friend's face told him that the three of them knew something that he didn't. As he walked towards the small Christmas tree lot to collect the tree for Changkyun's cute toddler class with Taehyung, he noticed just how uncharacteristically quiet the two of them were. He was concerned that something was wrong with his friend, and was even more worried that it was the he had noticed his flustered state due to Yugyeom's comment earlier in the day. He felt his concern overwhelm him, followed by an intense urge to wrap the elder in a blanket and hug him until he felt better. The sudden thought of essentially cuddling with Taehyung made Jungkook's building question die in his throat. He felt himself curl up inside, trying to keep himself from thinking about being wrapped up in the other's arms. The longer the thought about it, the more he looked away from Taehyung and the warmer he felt himself growing. Suddenly, Taehyung began humming a Christmas tune that broke him out of his silent revere. That's when he broke into song, enthusiastically singing both parts and then spinning to fully face Jungkook, ends of the jacket he had tied around his waist fanning out, his signature boxy grin plastered across his face. 

"Baby its cold outside!" A cheeky smile had replaced the child-like grin on Taehyung's face and Jungkook was unsure on how to react. His heart began racing at the thought of Taehyung actually addressing him as baby, but he brushed it off as Taehyung being his goofy self. He looked Taehyung dead in the eyes with his own wide, confused ones and replied the exact same way as he would have if it was Yugyeom or someone else actually messing with him.

"Then put on your coat." 

Turning into the tree lot to grab the tree, Jungkook missed the look of disappointment that flickered behind Taehyung's eyes.

Later that afternoon, the kids in Changkyun's class managed to elicit the exact same reaction out of the two, except Changkyun had noticed Jungkook's reaction. When they arrived, the kids were just finished their afternoon snack and were playing around while Changkyun tidied. Jungkook knocked softly on the bright yellow door as he entered, leaving Taehyung struggling with the tree behind him. 

"Hyung, we're -"

"KOOKIE!"

"ALIEN-HYUNG!" 

"Seungmin!" Changkyun gasped at Seungmin's sudden outburst. Seungmin ignored his gasp and ran past Jungkook to hug Taehyung's legs. Taehyung laughed and Jungkook felt a tightness in his chest at the sight, smiling softly before turning back to a tiny Jeongin running towards him. It didn't take long for the others to follow suit, crowding around the two boys until Changkyun clapped his hands and asked them to sit down until the had the tree ready for decoration. It was when Jungkook was helping Chan untangle Woojin from the tinsel Minho had strewn around him when what was said turned him into a stuttering mess. 

"Woojin-ah," Chan had attempted to whisper. "Taehyung-hyung looks like the mermaid Kyunnie-hyung showed us, doesn't he." 

Woojin had nodded sincerely in agreement.

"But if he's Ariel and he has legs and his voice, then where is his Eric?" 

Jungkook had chuckled lightly at Chan's logic, not expecting Woojin to actually have an answer.

"I thought Jungkookie-hyung was his Eric," Woojin furrowed his eyebrows at the younger inn his innocence. The two looked up at a wide-mouthed Jungkook, innocent smiles and questioning eyes. He was vaguely aware of Changkyun watching him from behind, but refused to look at him. 

"Kookie-hyung..."

"Are you Taehyungie-hyung's Eric?" 

Jungkook choked on air and began spluttering, not knowing how to actually respond.

"Ah no.. uh.. We're just... friend.."

"Boys, how about we go help Jisung and Minho with the baubles and make sure that they don't start seeing how many they can hang off one another again, hm?" Changkyun ushered the boys away as he sat beside a dazed Jungkook, grinning slyly.

"So, Eric, how is things going with your Ariel?" 

"Wha-What?" Jungkook spluttered, shaking his head wildly. "I have no idea-"

"Your reaction to both the kids and me questioning you about Taehyung is exactly the same as mine was when customers in the café I worked in asked me about your uncle."

Jungkook looked down at the ground, avoiding eye contact furiously. 

"I'm just... confused? Or unsure? I don't know, Kyun," Jungkook muttered, picking at imaginary fluff on the scuffed ground. He felt Changkyun's arm go around his shoulders and pull him into a tight hug. 

"It's okay, you fluffy-brain. You'll figure it out," Changkyun whispered to him, smiling at the younger's embarrassment. Jungkook smiled softly at Changkyun's comment, before looking up in a hurry.

"Please don't say anything to dad! I know he supports you and Wonho-hyung but I don't know how he'd react to me..." Jungkook trailed off, his mind wondering, still unsure himself.

"It's okay Kook, I'm here when you need me and so is Wonho."

"Thank you, Kyun."

"Don't sweat it. We're like the Belle and the Beast to your Eric and Ariel."

Jungkook laughed. "I'm guessing Wonho-hyung is the Beast right?" 

"Of course!" 

The two were so engrossed in laughing together, they didn't notice the now broad and hopeful grin plastered on Taehyung's face as he removed the paper snowflakes the kids had made from Changbin and Hyunjin's hair.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It's been a little while, but I just want to thank you guys for your support and your comments! I love reading them, I just never know how to reply! Love you guys and hopefully the chapters get a bit better as they go!


	5. Shownu & Jooheon (I)

Shownu.

Completely defeated, Shownu shook his head at Jooheon's antics. He had been rambling for the past half hour about how excited he was to hear about Jungkook's reaction to Taehyung's new hair. It was amusing to listen to just how invested in the two of them his fiancé was. Chuckling lightly, he pulled out the seat next to him as Jooheon approached with their breakfast. In thanks, Jooheon pecked him lightly on the cheek.

"Do you think Taehyung thinks anything of how secretive we've been recently?"

Shownu looked at Jooheon, an incredulous expression on his face.   
"Jooheon, you realise how completely oblivious Tae is, right? More than I am, and I'm pretty bad."

Jooheon glanced up from his coffee and smiled softly, his dimples carving themselves into his cheeks.

"You're not wrong," Jooheon lowered his voice to barely above a whisper, something Shownu had rarely witnessed from him. "I'm just terrified that he'll figure out what we're planning. Or assume something else and worry himself sick or something. You know how sensitive he can be!"

Shownu chuckled gently, rubbing Jooheon's back as he drank from his coffee.  
"Don't worry, Jooheoney. I don't think we've been too obvious talking about it. You've been doing a really good job at keeping it secret, there isn't much longer now."

Jooheon choked shortly on his coffee before letting out a short laugh and shaking his head.   
"You do realise how weird that sounds right?"

Shownu gave him a bewildered look, his eyebrows creased and his mouth pulled into a small pout. Jooheon began to open his mouth to speak but the sudden appearance of a familiar shadow in the doorway stopped him. Shownu glanced up and forgot immediately about Jooheon's antics, smiling warmly at the teenager that meant so much Jooheon, and now to him also. Taehyung now sported a vibrant shade of red in his hair, one that Shownu had to admit looked great, despite his unwillingness to join in on Jooheon's hair dying ideas.

"Taehyung-ah! You look ready for Christmas with the red hair," Jooheon bounced in his unstable kitchen island stool, prompting Shownu to grab onto the back of it to prevent him from falling. Keeping his arm firmly across Jooheon's back, he let out a silent breath of relief at having successfully prevented his fiancé from injuring himself. Again. "Jungkookie is going to love it!"

Shownu chuckled at Taehyung's widening eyes at Jooheon's comment. He had known it was coming but would never stop the two from their teasing.

"Aish, every time hyung!" The crimson haired boy in front of them complained, his voice raising an octave or so from its usual deep timbre. It was a slight indication to Shownu, however, that maybe Taehyung was more nervous about showing off his new hair colour to Jungkook than he was letting on. He knew how important the tiniest of things were to Taheyung, feeling the exact same thing regarding Jooheon.

"Jooheony, lay off the kid," Shownu muttered softly, gazing across at him fondly as he placed his hand on top of Jooheon's. He got a cheeky, dimpled smile in response.

""What? I'm right, am I not? He's going to visit the pre-school kids today and we both know how excited the smallest of those cuties get when he sees Tae and Jungkookie."

He watched as Taehyung went quiet and the softest of smiles graced his strong features as he spoke," Seungmin-ah was looking for you guys again the last time I visited. Changkyun-hyung said that he's been asking for you guys every time he mentions a visitor coming in."

Jooheon grabbed the hand Shownu had placed on his own tightly. Seungmin was the second youngest of the children in Changkyun's class, and the one that seemed to have grown on the trio. They had spoken quite often to Changkyun about the children and the unfortunate circumstances they were in. Shownu's heart ached at the thought of the kids not having solid parental figures in their lives, especially with the knowledge of what Taehyung had gone through. He wanted nothing more than the best for each of them, but felt he himself wasn't the best. He even had doubts about Jooheon current plans, but there was no possible way he could say no. These plans had been in play far longer than Shownu had even known Jooheon! Granted, there was less that could go wrong with his plans now but Shownu felt he was still going to mess up somehow. He had never voiced these concerns to Jooheon, and had no intentions of doing so. Jooheon would only begin to worry and end up panicking. A panicked Jooheon was the worst kind of Jooheon, one that Shownu still hadn't gotten used to dealing with.

He watched for a few minutes as Taehyung rummaged around the fridge in search of breakfast, no doubt throwing whatever random foods that took his fancy into a bowl that particular morning. It was one of Taehyung's quirks to eat rather strange food combinations and not even Jin could wrap his head around them. Shownu could feel Jooheon quivering with excitement alongside him and couldn't help but break out into a smile.

"Oh, was he?"

Taehyung turned from the fridge, balancing an assortment of yoghurt and indistinguishable foods in his arms, shutting the door with the bottom of his foot in the process. Shownu was about to speak up and reprimand him for closing doors with his feet (again) but what Taehyung said caught him by surprise.

" Yeah, Jungkook-ah and I are going to visit them after school today with a Christmas tree. i was thinking maybe we could but a few of them presents."

Shownu shared a fleeting glance with Jooheon. As much as both of them wanted to, between their wedding expenses and their surprise, they knew that they didn't exactly have the means to buy the nine kids proper Christmas presents. Although, anything they bought them would still be better than the lack of gifts they would receive. Taehyung appeared to have noticed their exchange and became visibly embarrassed.

"I mean, I saved up a bit so i could anyways, they're just so small and I don't think they're getting..much..." he dropped his breakfast onto the table and looked up at the clock hung precariously about the kitchen door and attempted to mask his expression with an extremely bad attempt at surprise. "You know what, I'm running late for school, love you guys!"

Jooheon stood suddenly as Taehyung ran out the door, his mixed breakfast left forgotten on the kitchen island. Visibly upset, Jooheon called after Taehyung.

"Wait, Tae your breakfast! Taehyung!" Jooheon rushed out of the kitchen to follow the younger, leaving Shownu seated behind the marble counter alone. He was baffled by Taehyung's sudden outburst, but completely understood his attachment to the children. Slowly standing, Shownu began gathering what was left on the counter from their rather eventful breakfast as he waited for Jooheon to come back from what he assumed to be a failed attempt at chasing Taehyung back into the house. He had barely collected their now cold coffee mugs when a rather dejected Jooheon slammed the front door and re-entered the kitchen. Immediately Shownu ambled over and wrapped him in a strong hug. Jooheon's head fell into place on his shoulder, his eyes closed as a frown etched itself onto his face. Shownu pressed a kiss to the side of his head. They remained in their embrace until Shownu took note of the time and realised he was actually required to leave his house for work.

"Jooheony?"

"Mhmm?"

"I have to go. The new PM is starting today and I need to be there to make sure everything is ready." Shownu reluctantly let go of the shorter male to shrug on his jacket. Jooheon remained standing in the middle of the floor, looking slightly preoccupied. Shownu smiled fondly at him and gently placed a hand on Jooheon's cheek, tilting his face so he could look him in the eye.

"Don't let Taehyung worry you too much, 'heony. It's not unlike him to project his nervousness from one thing to another," Shownu was attempting to assure not only Jooheon but himself that Taehyung's awkward behaviour was actually due to being nervous to show Jungkook his new hair colour, or something menial like that that was generally 'important' to teenagers. The distant expression on Jooheon's face softened as the frown melted away. Shownu leaned down and pecked him shortly before heading for the door. Jooheon followed, but stopped at the front door. Shownu knew he would watch as he got into the car and made sure he was safely on his way. Before Shownu could sit into the car, Jooheon broke the still morning silence hanging over their street.

"Hyunwoo-ah! Don't forget our meeting about the reception during your lunch break!"

Shownu chuckled lightly as he sat into the driver seat of what Taehyung affectionately called his 'Mom Car'.

"Don't worry, Heony, I'll be there! Love you!"

"Love you too!" Jooheon waved Shownu off as he closed the door and backed out of the drive.

Shownu's mind wandered as he drove to work, endlessly flitting between what had Taehyung so worked up, just how close he was to marrying the one person that could make him smile without fail, that made him feel worth something and then lastly to the chaos that was sure to ensue upon the arrival of Yoo Kihyun, the new Prime Minister. Not once, however, did his meeting with Jooheon cross his thoughts. Not even when he spoke with Yoongi about Jin that morning or when he text Jooheon to tell him about their extra guest. Not even come lunch.

Jooheon.

By ten, Jooheon had stress organised his study, re-filed all of his papers and taken a step into Taehyung's room but backtracked as soon as he witnessed the complete and utter chaos that lay about his room. Clothes were left in piles on the floor, a stack of clean ones left on his desk chair, which was situated right next to his wardrobe. Papers were strewn across it with charcoal pencils and eraser rubbings dusted on-top of them. Rolling his eyes, Jooheon sighed and wandered back downstairs to find a message from Shownu on his phone.

Shownu 🐻❤  
Heony, Jin-hyung is coming for dinner later too, if that's ok? Yoongi-ah said he's lonely and that he's going to insist on bringing dessert.   
10:10

Of course it's ok! Namjoon-hyung is coming as well, maybe he   
might distract Jin a little 😏  
10:13

Shownu 🐻❤  
I should start calling you Cupid instead of Jooheon at this point..between Tae and Jungkook and now these two. I'm just glad you can't see Minister Yoo and Yoongi-ah interacting.   
10:15  
Actually, Minister Yoo is actually pretty short....he looks even smaller that Changkyun-ah.  
10:17

Everyone looks tiny to you, sweetheart. You're just bigger than everyone 😂  
10:18

Jooheon chuckled to himself as he put his phone back into his pocket. Despite the lighthearted conversation, he was slightly puzzled as to why Shownu had text him all of this instead of just telling him before their lunch meeting. He shook it off as Shownu just keeping track of things before he forgot in the midst of the chaos that he was sure was occurring in Hooper street at that given minute. To occupy himself, Jooheon went through what was left in the fridge so he could take stock of what he needed to get that afternoon for the dinner with his unexpected guest. Judging by the mostly empty shelves, he guessed that both Taehyung and Shownu had been night-snacking again, despite his best efforts to prevent them from eating everything before the end of every week. For the next hour or so he scouted through their cupboards to investigate as to what else he needed for that evening's dinner, now that there was going to be twice as many for dinner. Making a split second decision, Jooheon headed out early, walking to their local supermarket.

By the time Jooheon had finished paying for the food (and thanking Wonpil for agreeing to hold his groceries there until after his meeting), he thought he was the one running late. Panicking, Jooheon had ran at full speed down the main street, barely apologizing to the people he brushed past in his rush to arrive on time. Heart pounding, Jooheon caught the next bus out of the city centre to the suburbs where a quaint hotel stood overlooking a serene lake. The wedding venue. Despite originally having his heart pounding at the thought of being late, as Jooheon ran up the stoned drive of the hotel he realised that he couldn't see Shownu's car anywhere. 

Stepping across the threshold of polished marble entrance, Jooheon was sprung upon by a rather energetic blonde male.

"Mr. Lee! I'm Byun Baekhyun, co-owner and manager of ChanBaek. We thought you weren't coming!" 

Jooheon bowed lowly and quickly, mildly embarrassed.

"I apologise, Mr. Byun. I lost track of time preparing for a dinner this evening and had to catch the bus out," he glanced around, scanning the reception area for the unmissable figure of his fiancé. Unfortunately, he didn't spot the large outline of Shownu anywhere is the open plan reception, furnished sparsely with grey velvet cup-chairs and short mahogany coffee tables decorated with a singular sunflower and sprig of baby's breath in a slender vase sat in the centre. A slender figure was making it's way towards them, a small pouty child held in his arms. 

" There's no need to call me Mr. Byun. it makes me feel like an old man. Just call me hyung," Baekhyun beamed at the slightly taller. Jooheon felt part of his stress vanish at the simple gesture. Baekhyun appeared to have noticed the man walking towards them and continued speaking.   
"Ah, Chanyeol-ah, Mr. Lee has arrived. Mr. Lee this is my partner, Park Chanyeol." 

Mildly flustered, Chanyeol attempted to bow his head as the child made grabby hands at Baekhyun. 

"Sorry 'Khyun-ah, Sanha refused to stay with your mother. Nearly screamed the place down," Chanyeol breathed out as Baekhyun calmly took the now smiling child from him. He bowed again in Jooheon's direction. " I apologise about this Mr. Lee, our son seems to be rather clingy today." 

Jooheon smiled fondly at the trio in front of him, vaguely reminded of his own trio. 

"No need to apologise hyung, and please call me Jooheon. Mr. Lee sounds very much so like a stereotypical movie business man."

Both Baekhyun and Chanyeol chuckled at the sentiment. 

" Before we begin, my fiance doesn't happen to be here yet does he? His name is Son Hyunwoo. He would be wearing a security uniform?" Jooheon questioned, slightly anxious. Both men in from of him frowned as Baekhyun shook his head.

"I'm sorry Jooheon-ah, but no."

Jooheon frowned and checked his phone. They were running almost an hour late as it was and any further delay would result in Jooheon being late back for Namjoon, Jungkook and Taehyung arriving, not to mention Jin.

"If you like we could wait a few more minutes.." Chanyeol trailed off. Jooheon shook his head.

"No, no. I'm sure you're very busy here and I have to get back before some guests arrive. I'm sure he just got stuck at work or something." 

Chanyeol and Baekhyun shared a glance that Jooheon didn't like the look of. He tried to ignore it, the dubious expressions on their faces and tiny Sanha drooled all over Baekhyun's shoulder, but it was difficult to forget about it. He knew it would come back to bug him later that evening when he was left to his own thoughts. 

Despite his meeting to finalise the details for their wedding going well and the best distraction being given to him that evening, Jooheon couldn't help but feel angry at Shownu. He appeared to have forgotten completely about their plans and nonchalantly strolled in just after Namjoon had arrived without explanation as to why he hadn't come earlier. For a while, Jooheon had been amused by the awkward unintentional flirting between Namjoon and Jin , something the others didn't seem to have caught onto. When Namjoon and Jin had left (with Namjoon offering to drop Jin home rather than him walking in the dark, an offer that had Jin stuttering and Jungkook suffering from the greatest second hand embarrassment and shock Jooheon had the pleasure to witness), Jooheon had asked Jungkook and Taehyung to tell Shownu to tidy up after their dinner. Annoyed at Shownu for forgetting, Jooheon traveled upstairs and left their spare quilt and pillow outside the door, signifying to Shownu that he was to sleep in the spare room. Upset, he had ignored the confused muttering of Taehyung outside his door as he passed by with Jungkook, and even more-so when he heard Shownu call out to him from the door not much later. It hurt more that he didn't realise what he had forgotten than the fact that he hadn't turned up. Jooheon just hoped that this was the only time Shownu would forget something as important. Or would apologise before the weekend was out. If not, it was Hyunwoo for the weekend then.


End file.
